Gods/Jhemi
Jhemi of the Infinite Treasures A little known goddess almost solely known to the Rat Folk. To her followers she represents all things that hold no value, to others she is the goddess of useless junk. She is typically depicted by statues constructed of varied materials that rarely have any recognizable value (typically items that are considered trash). The statues show her sitting with two hands outstretched, once closed palm-down and the other open palm-up, representing charity and assistance respectively. A tradition among her followers is to add additional arms extended from her back, each holding an item that represents something of significance to the follower or warren. Basic Tennents The most basic of her teachings instruct her followers to find value in what others would declare worthless. The result of this is that they usually collect a great deal of junk, however they almost always have stories of how something that was thrown out by another was greatly significant in their life. Despite their tendency to hoard, her teachings do not instruct her followers to keep everything they acquire. Instead, she instructs them to trade often, so that which has no value to them might find value with others. As far as moral teachings are concerned, she is a True Neutral Deity. Good and evil both have value to her faith. One can not exist without the other, believing that a world of perfect good would suffer just as greatly as a world of perfect evil. Attaining Godhood While the priests of Aroden reject her entirely, refusing to accept the possibility of a ratfolk god, her story is directly tied to Aroden's. It was in the years prior to his ascension that she found him in one of his guises as the beggar. She treated him well, in fact to the best she had and aided him on his journey. It came to pass that she encountered him several times after, each time offer him rest and refreshment. While she never directly aided him, he came to know that she would always provide a safe place to all who asked and they would come away refreshed and far less world weary for it. The only thing she ever wanted in return was trinkets from their travels, which she found endlessly valuable. It was not until the final days of the Age of Destiny that she grew to know her place, having incidentally hosted many heroes and legends with her hospitality. She was astonished to find that the pitiful beggar that others turned away and she had taken in had become a god. After Aroden's ascension, he visited her one more time. She fell before him as one who is old humble and sees no value in herself would do. She found nothing in her home that she could imagine of being worth to share with him and begged his forgiveness. It was at this time she learned the most valuable lesson in her life, as he had found value in her trinkets, chipped dishes, and stew cobbled from whatever she could scrounge. He directed her to the Star Stone, and while he could not guarantee her success he provided her with what help he could. His words to her is that the world needs a god to represent those who see no value in themselves, one who brings rest to the weary. In the year of 2AR she passed the test and ascended. There was talk of this event, but in just a few short years the tales were discarded as rumor. Now thousands of years later, only her own rat folk have any common knowledge of her name or place in history. The Church With No Doors In the stories, Jhemi's home was decrepit to the point that there was no front door, and her temples are built to match. Temple's to Jhemi are built so that nothing will prevent a vistor from entering or leaving. Each temples sanctuary is modeled after her home, with whatever furniture can be scrounged together from the trash and salvaged cooking tools over a hearth. Where possible, gatherings take place at the table over a serving of stew with whoever has the least recognition present taking the nicest seat. For the few aware of their presence, these temples provide safe refuge to any who can not manage their own. While they are usually in the worst segments of town (or the sewers) and offer little comfort, they will provide a roof and food while only asking for trinkets or stories in return. However, they will not approve of stories of great adventures, but will rather prefer stories of home or travel. Providing fair hospitality for guests is of vital importance to these temples. Even in places where most or all of the followers are evil will guarantee the safety and health of guests, but often only within the bounds of the temple. Those who would harm guests are dealt with swiftly and harshly, though the exact outcomes vary significantly by the alignments present (with Evil followers often taking a violation as an excuse to ignore all requirements of hospitality and take full advantage of the violator). The Forbidden Tome Upon ascending, the ratfolk began worshipping her almost immediately, this made her quite uncomfortable. When they began to collect whatever story of her they could find into a holy text she forbade its creation. Her holy book was created despite her direct objections, it is cobbled together from multiple manuscripts of different origin and language, rarely in order. The materials of the book offer little to be impressed by as it is cobbled together from cheap materials and never has any gilding. Most of the book is written in what now is called the Ancient Rat Tongue, however parts are written in Dwarven, Goblin, Undercommon, and even one segment is in Draconic. The stories contained within rarely focus directly on Jhemi, but rather on events in which she participated in, with some of these stories mirroring common legends in other communities. Trappings of the Faith The holy symbol most commonly used by Jhemi's priests is a object engraved with either an open hand turned upward, or a closed hand turned downward. While the material this is engraved on varies significantly, items that have two clearly defined sides typically have both engravings with one on each side. For those of her followers needing to defend themselves or their guests, her chosen weapon is an improvised cudgel. Domains At her core, Jhemi is a goddess of hospitality and urban wilderness. As such her domains are Home (sub-domain of Community), Ruins, and Artifice. Roleplaying Tips Devout followers of Jhemi tend to show an unusual awareness of people and items disregarded for others. Typically they will treat the dregs of society with as much, if not more respect than those who are normally considered respectful. Remember that nothing is absolutely useless, while it may not have use for you it can easily and often be traded to someone who finds it useful for something that is directly useful to you. This goes significantly for worn or broken equipment, with many devout followers continuing to use items and equipment that would have long since been discarded by others. When an item stops being useful, they tend to make an attempt to repurpose it towards a new use or otherwise seek a usage for it (a destroyed shirt may still make good bandages, washcloths or handkerchiefs... often all of the above at the same time). Lore of Jhemi in the World Jhemi is perpetually disregarded by outsiders, mostly known as the occasional rumor of "that ratfolk god of useless junk". Just about everything of significance in the faith has the misfortune of being misinterpreted easily by outsiders. With the symbolic hand of assistance (the upturned open hand) or hand of generosity (the downturned closed hand) misinterpreted as begging and threatening. Jhemi is most well known among the ratfolk. While most are not followers, they have a strong core number. In any place with a significant ratfolk population, there is likely a temple of Jhemi present.